Bamberg, Melli bury Maccabi and losing streak

Brose Bamberg broke its series of big leads that resulting in heartbreaking losses with style on Wednesday by steamrolling host Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv 70-85. With its first road win this season, Bamberg broke a five-game losing streak and lifted its record to 3-8 while Maccabi fell to 5-6. Nicolo Melli led the charge with career highs of 27 points, 14 rebounds, 6 three-pointers and a performance index rating of 40! After seven players shared 9-for-14 three-point shooting in the first half, Bamberg tied its club record in EuroLeague play by making 13 of 27 from downtown, or 48.1%. Darius Miller added 12 points and Leon Radosevic 11 while Nikos Zisis dished 9 assists for the winners. Andrew Goudelock had 20 points, Sonny Weems 16 and Colton Iverson 10 for Maccabi, which went scoreless during the first 4 minutes of the first quarter and the first 3 of the second, after which it never got closer to the lead than 8 points.

Melli struck from downtown to open the scoring then added a two-pointer to make it 0-5. Fabien Causeur fed Radosevic for a layup before Maccabi, after 7 missed shots, got a triple from Devin Smith. Causeur answered with a three-pointer but Iverson scored twice inside, Victor Rudd fed Smith for another open shot from the arc, and suddenly Maccabi was tied 10-10. Maodo Lo entered and hit a high layup for Bamberg, but Smith matched it with a finger roll and Goudelock supplied Maccabi's first lead with free throws, 14-12. Bamberg clearly didn't like that, so Janis Strelnieks and Lo buried back-to-back threes to retake a 14-18 edge. Lo was back to finish the quarter with a buzzer-beater in transition to make it 16-20 after 10 minutes. Maccabi started the second quarter with 2 turnovers while Daniel Theis made a jumper and assisted to Patrick Heckmann at 16-24. Theis then rejected Weems inside and blasted a triple at the other end for the first double-digit lead, 16-27. After 3 scoreless minutes, Weems scored a layup, but Heckmann answered from deep and then Melli copied him on a perfect swish to make it 18-33. Bamberg had hit 7 of 10 three-pointers by then. Iverson and Guy Pnini hit 5 of 7 free throws for the hosts but then Miller came alive with 2 jumpers inside the arc and another beyond it as Bamberg raced ahead 23-40. Maik Zirbes got his first basket for Maccabi but then committed his third foul. Goudelock's next 4 perfect free throws got Maccabi within 27-41 but Miller was unstoppable from the arc and Melli was left completely alone for another triple as Bamberg rolled to a 30-46 halftime lead.

Another three-pointer by Mell opened the second half, and though Goudelock answered with his own, Melli was left open again there to make it 33-52. Weems detonated an alley-oop dunk before Radosevic did the same and made a tip-in for the first 20-point lead, 35-56. When Goudelock beat the shot-clock buzzer, Theis made another tip-in. Weems joined the back and forth with a jumper and a slam before Goudelock hit from the arc at 44-60, forcing a Bamberg timeout. Rudd found his range from downtown and Yogev Ohayon followed him to cut the difference to 50-62. Rudd hit a layup to finish the third quarter as Goudelock did to start the fourth by lowering the difference to single digits, 54-62. Radosevic answered with a layup and Melli backed down the smaller D.J. Seeley to make it 54-66. Goudelock blasted in for another layup but Melli backed down and scored again before Miller dropped a jumper at 56-71. Oyahon and Weems reduced the difference to 62-73 with 5 minutes left. Weems made it single digits with free throws but soon Strelnieks broke a double-team to score a layup. Rudd's baseline jumper kept Maccabi within 66-75. Theis found a cutting Causeur alone for a layup for another double-digit difference, 66-77, with 2:12 to play. Causeur strolled in for another layup that drew disapproval from the crowd for Maccabi's lack of defense. Then Melli made sure with his fifth and sixth triples in the final 75 seconds as the visitors refused to let this one slip away.

Head Coaches

HADAR, RAMI

Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv

"A big disappointment for us. We played below our level. We played with nothing of energy. And all in all, not a decent performance. Our execution level was low. We were lacking on every level on offense. I heard the fans and I certainly understand them. During a season, there are changes in momentum and right now, we've hit a low. We have to find a way to get better."

TRINCHIERI, ANDREA

Brose Bamberg

"I believe that we put together a very smart game. We were very efficient. We came from behind here after five very painful losses. But when you have a team, these things can happen. I have a team. They played as a team. Everybody was really, really important. Easy to Nicolo put together an amazing game. But everybody, even if they played one minute, gave us something. So we came here as a team and we go home with a team win."

"We made a lot of effort and everything. And we didn't have the result, only that was missing. When it happens one, two, three, four, five times, it's tough. But we came here as a team. We played extremely efficient, very smart, very focused. We played through our mistakes. We had a game plan. We wanted to do things in the way we planned. And we go home with a historical win for Bamberg. To come to this place against this big, big powerhouse of traditional basketball - as you see here with all the trophies and everything - I am really, really extremely happy for my players. They were great, simply great. They didn't think about the last five games. When you lose by one point, one point, two points, one point to the best teams in Europe, it's hard. But I have great players and congratulations to my players."

Players

PNINI, GUY

Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv

"I have no explanation but it's clear our level of energy wasn't where it needs to be from the very start. Once you start this slow, you put yourself in a position of chasing the other team and that's very difficult to do. We have no choice but to come back to work tomorrow and try to get out of this period as a team."

MELLI, NICOLO

Brose Bamberg

"It's amazing really. We deserve it, really. We came here. We played with personality. We were coming, honestly, from a tough moment, because we were playing good, making mistakes, stupid ones sometimes, and always losing by one, two, three points. Only in Kaunas, where we didn't play well, did we lose by much. So it's tough when you lose like this almost every time. You know you are playing good but the result is not coming. Today I think we did an incredible job and really I am happy for everybody, from the management to the young guys who practice with up. We deserved it. We know how much effort we had to put to win this game, to come here and play with this personality. So I am glad we did it. I think our ranking is fake. It's not true. We are playing better than the results say. But the court speaks. We just won two games before tonight. We were at the bottom. But we came and played with personality, something we've done every single game this year in EuroLeague, something that last year we didn't show. And so, I think we deserve it. We came to one of the toughest courts against one of the most talented teams, and we won."